Autographic register.



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AUT-OGRAVPI'HCv REGISTER. APPLICATION FILED FEB. l2. |908;-A

Panted July 13, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEETI 4Lui-63520;:

w n|TscHAn`D. AUTOGRAFHIC REGISTER.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. I2, 190B.-

July 2 sHEgTs- Patented 13, 1915.

sneu 2.

IIIIIIIIIII UNITED sTATEs APATEisIT OFFICE t WILLIAM RITscHAnD, or NEWYORK, N. Y., AssIGNoR 'To UNITED AUTOGRAPHIC REGISTER co., oF CHICAGO,ILLINOIS, A ooRPoRATIoN or ILLINOIS.

AUTOGRAPHIC REGISTER.

r 'all Iwhom Iz'tmay conce-m v-fBe it known that I, WILLIAM RITSCHARD,

-faf'citi'zen vof the United States, residing at New York, in'the countyof New York and -State'of N ew York, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Autographic Regis-vA of rolls of paper are supported i'na casing,

and the webs of paper carried forward over a platen `or writing surface.Sheets of carbon paper or other manifolding material are interposedbetween the webs of paper so that the original record or writing`of thetop web of paper is transmitted to the lower webs of paper, and whensuch record has been made on the portion of paper over the writingsurface, the several webs of paper are carried v forward to bring-afresh portion in position,

one of the Webs being rewound on a record roll within the casing, andthe remaining webs torn ofi'.

One of the objects of my invention is the provision of new and improvedmeans for feeding th'e paper forward over the writingV surface.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an improved devicefor supporting the record roll withinv the casing.

.IjiLstill further object of the invention isv toprovide means tovengage the inner surfaces lof the hollow tubular cores of thesupplyrolls and act as a friction brake or ref tarding device'for therolls.

Other objects of the invention will appear hereinafter, the novelcombinations of ele- -40 mentsE being set forth in the appended claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings in which is illustrated aconstruction embodying one form of my invention,-Figure i 1y is a sideelevation of the machine with the adjacent side of the casing removed;Fig. 2 isa plan view; Figs. 3 and i are front and rear end elevationsrespectively; Fig. 5 is a sectiona-l side elevation vof the oppositeside l ,n from that shown in Fig. 1. part being broken away, and certainparts of the machine being omitted for the sake of clearness; F ig. 6 isa detail showing means for automatically operating the tearing blade;Fig. 7 .isa detail view ofa ret-arding device for a supply roll;

Fig. 8 is a sectional detail view of the record roll; and Fig. 9 is -afragmentary detail view of lthe paper clamp.

Y The casing comprises side plates A and B connected by braces l, 2 and3, 4, located at opposite ends of the casing and which forni with thevside plates a rigid frame. The bottom C of the casing is made removablein ,order to permit the supply rolls to be in- Serted or removed, and ashere sliownis slidable endwise in the guides 5. The ends 6 and 7 of thecasing are preferably hinged near the upper corners of the side platesA, B as b v means'of the lugs 8 formed on or secured to the end plates,and journaled in the upper corners of the side plates. This thence overthe writing surface and forward to the guide roller 13 at the frontend'of the machine and down to the record roll H. The manifoldingmaterial which may consist of a roll of carbon paper 14 is contained ina receptacle 15 secured to the side of the casing. The roll 1l:` in thisvinst-ance comprises two sheets of carbon paper the free ends of whichextend across the writing surface andare interposed in the usual waybetween the webs of paper from the supply rolls. At the sidel of thecasing adjacent to the carbon roll, the sheets of carbon are securely.held or clamped in position by ymeans of a bai- 16 which ts between abracket 17 and the side of the casing. EX- tending along the left handside of the writing surface is a supporting member 18 se-- cured to theside A of the casing by means of depending arms 19 which arecurvedoutwardly to space said member from the side of the casing. Theends of the carbon sheets are clamped between the-supporting member 18and a clamping bar 20 pivoted at 21 to the member 18. The opposite endof the bar 20 is lvieldingly held in position by a. spring 22 whichpulls the -bar toward the number 18 but permits the bar to be swung backand .the Carbon sheets `placed in position. Any

Specification of Letters Patent. I Patented July 13, 1915, i yApplication led February 12, 1908. Serial No. 415,488.v i

iolo

other suitable means may be used for hold-` B and the supporting member18 respec'- tively. The platen 12 ispreferably formed with an integralextension 12 at its forward end, offset to provide room for the paperclamp. in position over the platen 12 and spaced therefrom a suflcientdistance to permlt'the webs of pa )er to pass freely between said frameand txhe platen.

'lhc paper clamp G is supported by a carrying trame comprising bars 26and 27 a cross bar or brace 28 at the front end an a bar 2f) which formsthe lower or stationary member of' the paper clamp. The bar 29 isprovided at its ends with depending flanges 3l by means of which it isrigidly secured to the frame. An additional race 32 may be used in frontof the aper clamp if desired, and a sheet metal p atc 88 may be securedto the braces 28 and;32 by screws 34.' rl`he upper member 35 of thepaper clamp is hinged to the lowermember by means of lugs or bosses 36,37, secured to or formed on the upper and lower clamping members, and ahinge rod 38. Coil sprmgs 3f) serve to hold the clamping. ed es of thejaws firmly in engagement wlth't e pa er, and if desired the engagingsurface or e ges of the clamping jaws may be roughenedor lmurled asshown, or rovided with any other well known expe ient to prevent thepaper from slipping.

'lhe carrying frame is adapted to have a longitudinal reciprocatingmovement and is supported and guided on one side by the ribs 40, 41 onthe inner surface of the side B of the casing. The o posite side A ofthe casing is provided witi ribs 42, 43 spaced apart to receive asimilar rib 44 formed on the bar 27. The lower edge of the Ibar 27 isformed with rack teeth 45 which mesh with corresponding teeth on thedrive pinion 46. The pinion 46 is keyed to a shaft 47 journaled in thesides of the casing and provided outside the casing with a hand crank48.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2 a-short rockshaft 4f) is journaled in lugs 50on the inside of the rack bar 27. This rock-shaft has secured thereto anoutwardly extending trigger 51, and a rock arm 52 which extends inwardlybeneath a finger 53 secured'to the u per clamping jaw 35. Secured to thes e A of the casing is a cam Msadapted to engage the trigger- 51'at theend of the forward movement 'of' paperl clamp and :rock the shaft 4f)and arm 52. .This movement of the arm 52 lifts .thefinger v53 and-opensthe paper clamp. During the return move- A rectangular fraaie 25 issecured:

ward by .the cam 54, the front end of the latch is tilted downward untilthe trigger 'passes beyond the latch and permits 1t to swing back bygravity to its horizontal position and preventthe trigger from moving upabove the r1b 57 as the paper clamp 1s returned.

. The method of supporting the supply rolls within the casingwill now bedescribed. The spindles 58 which support these rolls each has an endflsquared or flattened to fit in a correspondingly shaped opening in abearing plate 60 secured to a lug 61 on the side B of the casing. Theother end of. the spindle is held by a socket 62 extending through an oening in the side A of the casing into a ox 63 cast integral with thecasing. A stem 6l on the socket (l2 extends outward through the box 63and is provided with a thumb piece 65. lA coil spring 66 holds thesocket normally in engagement with the spindle but permits the spindlewith its roll of paper to be readily inserted orv removed. -Mounted onthe spindle 5S are spools or cores 67 and 68 which are free to rotate onthe spindle. These spools are made-of a size to fit closely in thetubular cores upon which the commercial rolls of paper are usuallywound.In order to prevent the roll of paper from turning independently of thespools one of the spools, as 68, is preferably formed with'recesses 69in which are secured leaf springs 70 bowed so asy to extend outwardbeyond the periphery of the spool and frictionally engage the core ofthe paper roll.

Between the spools 67 and 68 is placed a friction device for preventingthe roll of paper from turning too freely. This device comprises atubular sleeve 71 and end flanges 72. The sleeve 71 has a portion cutawa)r from one side, and the spindle 58 has a corresponding flattenedportion 7 3. The sleeve fits on the spindle with the edges formed by thecut away portion in the same plane as the flattened surface of thespindle. A friction spring 74 has one end secured to the fiat surfaceformed by the sleeve and spindle and its free end is preferably providedwith a roller 75 which normally projects a short distance beyond theperipheries oft the spools 67, 68. lVhen the roll of paper is placed onthe spools the roller 75 bears against the inner surface of the tube onwhich the paper is wound and prevents the rollfrom 4turning too freely.'The flanges 72 protect the friction spring, but the sleeve and flangesmay in some cases he omitted, the spring then being secured directly tothe spindle. The relative position of thesprings and spoolson the shafts5S '4 a disk 92.

5 per. The spools are held in position on the y spindle by the collarsS2. j

The lrecord roll H which is formed by the web of paper from `the supplyroll F. is wound on a spool 7.6 of wood or other suit- A10 ablematerial. This spool has a. longitudinal slot to receive a wedge or flatbar 77 bv meansof which the web of paper is secured to the spool. ArecessTS in the spool permits the bar 77 to be grasped b v the thumb andlinger and thereby readilv removed.

The spool 76 is vmountedon a spindle 79, one end of which is journaledin the side A of the casing. The opposite end of the spindle has abearing in a circular plate or disk S0 removabljv held inthe side B ofthe casing.

vThis side B is formed with a circular' opening S1 somewhat smaller thanthe disk 80, said opening having recesses S3 to Areceive lugs 8st formedon the bearing disk S0. The

,disk 8O is secured in position in the side B of the casing byprojecting the lugs SJC through the recesses83 and then rot-ating thedisk to bring the lugs Si out of alinement with the recesses S3, asindicated in Fig. 1. The disk 80 is also provided .with

a central bearing 'S6 forthe end of the spindle 79, and with outsidelugs 85. Loosely mounted on the inner end of the spindle 79 is a toothedgear wheel ST meshing with an idler pinion 88 which in turn The gearmeshes with the rack-teeth 4:5. wheel ST carries a disk S9 provided withva spring pawl 90 which 'engages ratchet teeth 91 formed on the lateralsurface of The disk 89 which is secured to the gear wheel 8T ma)r bereplaced b v a seg- `ment or an arm if desired. The disk 92 which formsra driving member for rotating the spool 76, is preferably provided Iwith a ber plate 93 in frictional engagement with a similar plate 9isecured to the spool 76. The gear 92 is also provided ywith ratchetteeth 9i 4on its periphery which are engaged bv a spring pawl 95 toprevent backward rotation of the disk. spring pressed disk 96 isplacedbetweenv the outer end of the spool 76 and the bearing plate 80 tohold the fiber plates 93 and 91' in frictionalcontact.

y lT he tearing blade 97` is pivoted in the casing and its tearing edgeis normallv held up bv the spring 98. A handle 99 is used to swing theblade down to tearing position. If desired, means may be provided formoving the blade automatically. One arrangement which may' be used forthis purpose consists of a lever 100 having one end con4 nected by alink lOl-to the tearing blade 5 and 'the other end in position to bemoved by apin 102 on the gear Wheel 46 and move -blade 9T. l placed inposition and the free ends of the the tearing edge down as the paperclamp reaches its forward position. 'l q To prepare the aut-ographicregister for use, the Vbottom C ma)v be removed and the spindles 58 withtheir spools 6T. GS, taken out of the casing and the supply rolls D E, Fplaced thereon. The rolls with their spools and supporting spindles yarethen placed in position in the casing. The web f from the supply roll Fis then carried up over the roller 11. and forward over thev platen 1:2.between the clamping jaws 29 and 35, over the front roller 13, and downto the spool T6 to which Ait is secured by means of the clamp bar '78.-A carbon sheet is next placed in position over the web f. The web ofpaper e from the roll E vis next placed in position, as shown with itsfree end extending about to the tearing edge of the Another carbon sheetis then two carbon sheets secured b v the clamp bar 20. and iinallv .theweb d is placed in position vand the clamping jaws allowed to irmljvgrip the/three webs of paper from the suppl)v rolls,v The machine is nowready for use. Whenj'the portion of the paper in position over theplaten has been written upon and it is desired to feed the paperforward. the hand crank $8 is turned to rotate the gear -lG and move therack-bar 27 forward. The rack-bar carries with it the paper-clamp andthe three webs of paper which are securel)1 held thereby. During thisforward movementof the paper clampV and its supporting frame, thetrigger 51 moves above the rib 5T until it reaches the cam 5l whichmoves the trigger downwardly to open the paper clamp as beforeexplained. The ends of the webs d and e are now free and theoperator'grasps them with one hand at the recess 35 while with the otherhe moves the blade 9T down against the paper and then tears ott the twowebs. Thecrank i8 maj7 now be turned backward to return the parts totheir initial position. During this return moven'ient the trigger 51rides along the under surface of the rib 5T and holds thev paper-clampopen. As the paper-clamp reaches the limit of its ret-urn movement thetrigger 51 passes bevondthe rib 5T and permits the clamping jaws to snapshut on the three webs of paper readv for another opera-tion. It lwill'Abe observed that the tearing edge of the blade 97 is a short distanceforward of the initial position of the clamping jaws. and that the upperclamping jaw is up enough to readily clear the ends of the paper, whichinsures that all the webs will be caught bv the clamp when the trigger51 is released.

During` the forward movement of the rack-bar the gears 88, 487 areoperated to rotate the record roll-H and take up the web f as fast as itis fed forward by the paper clamp. The friction driving connectionbetween the spool 76 and the disk 92 )ermits the backward rotation ofthe spool reiatively to the disk which is necessary as the record rollincreases in size and the peri heral speed of the record roll relativelyto t at of the paper clamp increases. The pawl permits backward rotationof the gears 87, SS independently of the disk 92, while the pawlpositively prevents backward rotation of said disk.

rlhe paper-clamp and means for operating it form an important feature ofthe ypresent invention as they form a means for osilively feeding thepaper forward wit iout the. slipping or creeping that occurs when thepaper is fed forward in the usual way by a pair of rollers. rlhe presentarrangement also insuresl the paper being moved forward exactly the samedistance each time, and that all the webs shall be moved an e( ualdistance. This is specially desirable when printed forms are used and itis necessa ry to maintain the several webs in alinement and move themforward the same distance each time the machine is operated.

The present invention may readily be adapted to autographie'registershaving any desired number of webs of paper more or less than those shownin the drawings, and certain features of the invention may obviously beapplied to a machine using a single web of paper, or to a machine inwhich all the webs are torn off as they are used, and

' I wish therefore to have protection on all such forms of the inventionas come within the scope of the appended claims.

I desire further not to be limited to the exact construction shown, asvarious changes in the details of construction and arrangements of partsmight be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the sirit and scope of the invention.

W iat I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of theUnited States is 1. The combination with a easing, of means forsupporting a web or webs of paper therein, a platen, a paper clampmovable with respect to the platen to engage the paper and move it overthe platen, and a stationary guide coperating with the clamp and holdingit open during its return movement.

Q. The combination with a casing, of means for supporting a web or websof paper therein, a writing surface or platen, a pair of clamping jawsto engage the paper, means to impart a reciprocating movement to theclamping jaws, a device for opening said jaws at the end of theirforward movement, and a stationary device for holding said jaws openduring their return movement.

3. In an autographic register,the combination with a casing, of meansfor supporting a web or webs of paper therein, a writing surface, aclamp comprising paperclamping jaws, means for reciprocatmg said clammeans for holding said jaws closed dur1nY the forward movement of theclamp, a device for opening said jaws at or near the end of said forwardmovement, a stationar device for holding the jaws open during tie returnmovement of the clamp, and ermitting them to be closed at the end o1'said return movement, and a tearing edgel in position to sever thepaper.

4. In an autographic register, the, combination of a casing, a writingsurface, means for supportin a web of paper, a paper clamp adapte( toengage the web of paper, means for movin the clamp and feeding the paperover said writing surface, means for automatically opening the clampwhen it reaches a predetermined position` and stationary means forpositively preventing the clamp from being opened until it reaches saiduosition.

5. n an autographic register, the combination with a supply roll, of arecord roll, a ratchet-wheel carried thereby, a pawl, a rotatable memberco-axial with the record roll and carrying said pawl, means for rotatingsaid member a friction device between the ratchet-Wheel and record rollpermitting a forward movement of the ratchet wheel independent of therecord roll, and means for preventing backward rotation of the ratchetwheel.

6. In an autographic register, the combination of a Casin", a pluralityof supply rolls therein, a rolf-supporting spindle, said casing beingformed with an opening in the side wall thereof to permit the insertionor removal of the spindle and its roll, a plate having a bearing for theend of the spindle, and lugs on said late engaging the inner surface ofsaid si e wall and securing the plate in position over the opening.

7. In an autographic register, the combination with a writing surface orplaten, of means for moving a web or webs of paper over the platen, atearing blade, 1n fans for holding said blade out of operative positionduring such movement, and automatic means for moving the blade intotearing position.

8. In an autographie register,` the combination with a writing surfaceor platen, of a paper-clamp, means for moving the paperclamp bodilyforward to feed a web or webs of papel over the platen, a tearing bladeout of contact with the paper during such movement, and positive meansfor automatically moving the tearing blade into contact with the paperwhen the paper-clamp reaches a predetermined position.

9. In an autographic register, the combination with supply rolls, of arecord roll, a casing containing said rolls, a writingsurlOll lll.;

lill

face extending from a point near one end of the casing toward the centerthereof, means for guiding a web'of paper from one of the supply rollsover thev writing surface and in a horizontal direction beyond saidsurface, a device for feeding said web of paper forward and on to therecord roll, and a covering of sheet material for the horizontal portionof lsaid web beyond the writing surface.

ing surface and from thence to the record roll, a paper clamp comprisingclamping jaws locatedrespectively above and beneath said web of paper,means for operating the clamp to feed the paper forward and a coveringof sheet material carried by the clamp v and coveringthat portion oftheweb 'of at the end of the movement of the feeding paper extending beyondthe writing surface.

1l. In an autographic register, in combi--v nation, a writing tabletover which a web is adapted to be drawn, a tearing-blade adapted to moveinto and out ofengagement with the web, means adapted to feed the web,and

ineans whereby, the tearing-blade is automaticallymoved into contactwith the web means.` 12. In an autographic register, in combination, aWritin tablet over which 'webs ,are

adapted to bev eratively associated with said tablet and normally heldin inoperative position, and. means adapted, during the movement thereofin one direction, to advance the webs and move said tearing bladeintooperative position against the same. i

13. In an autographic register, in combination,a casing, a writingtablet over which the webs are adapted to be drawn, web.

drawing means, a tearing blade supported by said casing and coperatingwith said tablet to prevent movement of said .webs relatively to saidtablet, means normally holding said vtearing blade in inoperativeposition, and means operatively associated with saidy web-drawing meansfor automaticallyv moving said tearing blade into operative position asthe webs are drawn over said tablet.

14. In an autographic register, in combination, a casing, a writingtablet, means for drawing a web thereover, an oscillating tearing blademounted upon said casing and adapted to coperate with said tablet tohol-d yond' the writf rawn, a tearing blade opthe web, means normallyholding said tearing blade in inoperativeposition, an arm operativelyconnected to said blade, and means operatively associated with saidfirstmentioned means adapted to cooperate with said arm to move saidblade into operative position as the web is drawn over said tablet.

15, In an autographic register, in combination, a writing tablet overwhich the webs are adapted to be drawn, -web^drawing means', a tearingblade operatively associated with said tablet within the web supportingportion and normally held in inoperative position, and means operativelyconnected to said web-drawing means for moving said tearing Kblade intooperative position as the webs are drawn over said tablet'. v16.- In anantographie register, in combination, a writing tablet over which thewebs are adapted to be drawn,y web-drawing means, a tearing bladeoperatively associated with said tablet to prevent movement of said Websrelatively to said .tablet and normally'held in inoperative position,and

means for 'moving said tearing blade into operative position when saidmeans operatively associated with said vvebweb-drawing-means reaches theonterlimit d or' its travel. v i 17. In an aptographic registen-incombination, a'writing tablet over which the webs are adapted 'to bedrawn, web-drawing.

are adapted to be drawn, web-drawing means, a tea-ring blade operativelyassociated with said tablet and normally held in inoperative positionwith respect thereto and out of contact with said web-drawing means, andmeans operatively associated withsaid web-drawing means for moving saidtearing blade into operative position with respect to said tablet as thewebs are drawn thereover.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my.

, name to this specification in the presence or two subscribingwitnesses.

WILLIAM nrrsci-ia'nn.

Witnesses:

JOHN F. Rm, M. MORRIS.-

